Sabina Chege to face Electoral Body Tribunal next week
By Mercy SimiyuMurang’a Women Representative Sabina Chege will defend her ‘rigging’ claims before the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) in the coming week.
This is after the Electoral body rejected preliminary objections presented by her legal team during the initial hearing on Tuesday.
The politician appeared before the IEBC’s Conduct Enforcement Committee over remarks she made at a political rally in Vihiga County.
She is accused of suggesting that President Uhuru Kenyatta and his Deputy William Ruto manipulated the 2017 General elections.
IEBC dismissed objections presented by Senior Counsel James Orengo and Otiende Amollo which questioned the Electoral body’s competence to determine the matter.
“In terms of the provision of article 252 of the constitution the Commission may undertake investigations on its motion. In the matter before the committee, the Commission’s attention was drawn by the media report and the material bearing the utterances made by Sabina Chege and on its own motion was seized of this matter,”IEBC chair Wafula Chebukati said.
“The respondent herein is a member of Jubilee party and a serving Murang’a County Woman member of the national assembly having been elected on jubilee party ticket. In the premises, the respondent is subject to the code of conduct and is under duty to abide by the same,” Chebukati continued.
The legal team representing Ms Chege led by James Orengo and Otiende Amollo, argued that the breach set out in the statement did not meet the constitutional matters and it was not clear on what the charges were.
“The only thing is to withdraw from this matter and this will not be the end of investigation. The breach has set out in the statement don’t meet the constitutional matters. The words in the breach cannot be substance to enter into inquiry. Commission don’t have jurisdiction on this matter,” Orengo said.
The Electoral legal team will sit down and make a decision in regard to the clip that is in possession and custody of the electoral commission and the Sabina Chege’s council is now waiting to get the necessary material.
“When the matter was called out we raised several objections fundamentally to do with their jurisdiction committee and the electoral commission in handling this matter unfortunately they have decided they have jurisdiction in making that decision raised five or more grounds they only dealt with one ground,” Orengo said.
Chege reported said at a political rally that ‘something’ happened to Raila Odinga’s results in 2017 and that a similar scenario could be duplicated in this year’s election.
“Nimesikia wengine wakisema hapa tuliwaibia. Kuna kaukweli kidogo (I’ve heard others say we stole . There is an iota of truth).”
Ruto, has however dismissed the claims.